Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Moe Howard's Life Story Dished Up With Class And Great Humor, April 16, 2003
Moe Howard's book is a great quick read if you can find a copy. In it he tells us of his roots in Brooklyn New York, having been born with the decidedly non-show-biz name Moses Harry Horwitz following older brother Sam (Shemp) into the world. Later on, the baby of the family Jerome (Curly) came into being. The book is laced with great photos and funny anecdotes. For instance, Moe recalls noticing an ad in Billboard Magazine when he was a teenager, seeking a handsome actor with a nice wardrobe for some shows in Mississippi. Moe, lacking photos and nice clothes sent in a photo of his good-looking friend from down the block and to his amazement, received a train ticket in the mail. Never doubting his ability to sell himself, Moe ignored Shemp's hysterical warnings about being loony and setting himself up for criminal prosecution, and took the train ride down there. After the initial shock of the theater owner wore off, Moe swept floors for a few weeks and later became an actor in the troupe garnering some valuable early theater experience there. Later with Shemp, Moe became a vaudeville performer. One day Moe noticed a strange-looking entertainer playing violin while doing a kooky Russian dance as his act. This turned out to be Moe's first encounter with Larry Fine. Moe, Shemp, and Larry later hooked up with a star of the vaudeville circuit Ted Healy, playing his background foils. When Shemp decided to pursue some solo film work Curly was sent for to replace him, and when the three of them decided they'd had enough of Healy's drinking and uninspiring pay, they quit and The Three Stooges were born...(the name was Moe's idea) and the rest was history! When the Stooges signed with Columbia Pictures where they created their many famous film shorts (called "two-reelers"), their contract contained a clause which signed away their rights "in perpetuity in mediums existing now or to be invented." Unfortunately for the Stooges, one of the new mediums which was soon to be invented was television. When the Stooges's two-reelers were released on television they were an instant success. And while the Stooges did earn very respectable salaries from Columbia for their acting work, the mind boggles at the amount that would have flooded into their bank accounts from T.V. royalties. To me, this finally explains the long-lingering question I've had in the back of my mind as to why the Stooges kept on going with the far inferior replacements Joe Besser and Joe DeRita after the deaths of Curly and Shemp. The answer is that after the explosive success of the Stooges on television, they were able to command large personal appearance fees and endorsements to compensate for their being shut out from royalties by their contract. Furthermore, they were able to produce some lucrative feature-length films during this period. Throughout the book, Moe comes across as a classy and positive man, rolling with life's punches and enjoying "clean living", and always honoring his wife, children, brothers, parents, grandchildren and friends with an unflagging loyalty, pride and a deep and sincere love. Humble in the face of his iconic status, he allows himself to beam with pride at moments of great adulation and honor, and we beam right along with him. My only wish for this book is that Moe would have included some more glimpses into Curly's life, because we are left to wonder what he was up to as a child, adolescent and adult with only a few tantalizing tidbits offered here. But Moe's great love and respect for his brother Jerome/Curly does shines through. At one point he calls Curly a "genius in his field", an assessment validated by his secure place in the patheon of comedic legends, right alongside Moe, Larry and Shemp. We are richer people for Moe's memoirs. Highly recommended.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book by a great man, August 3, 1999
By A Customer
This book gives as a good look at the life and times of the Three Stooges. Not only from a Proffesional standpoint, but from a personal one as well. I can now see why the Stooges left Ted Healy, and how hard Moe worked. Overall, it tells you a lot about what their lives were really like.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A stooge-a-rama!, January 31, 2000
By A Customer
I found this book a very interesting book as it gives us a glimpse into the personal lives of all, but primarily the primary stooges Moe, Shemp, Larry and Curley. For the most part it gives you warts and all, both human strengths and frailties. All in all a wonderful book for those of us who grew up watching "the Three Stooges" shorts on TV. The only criticism I have, and that is very little, is that in a couple of places the story was a bit contradictory. But that may be a result of it being a work in progress at the time of Moe's death. I highly recommend.
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